Oil and grease deflector



June 5, 1945. L. R. FISH ETAL v2,377,770

OIL AND GREASE DEFLECTOR 7 Filed Feb. :5, 1943 2 SheetsSheet 1 I ff/or" ya une 5, 1 945.

1.. R. FISH ETQAL 2,377,770

OIL AND GREASE DEFLECTOR Filed Feb. 3, 194; 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 iii,

' 173%7222719: Zya/l R E'sfi Clare'rzceF Z'Vzqymarz B QM M ulttomeyg Patented June 5, 1945 OIL AND GREASE DEFLECTOR Lyall R. Fish and Clarence F. Wiegman, Minneapolis, Minn.

Application February 3, 1943 Serial No. 474,538

2 Claims. (CL 2865) This invention relates to oil and grease deflectors and particularly to such deflectors which are effective to prevent undesired passage of lubricant or the like along a rotating shaft or the like.

Where one portion of a rotating shaft requires lubricationit is usually desirable to confine the oil and grease to that particular portion of the shaft in order to avoid waste of lubricant or to prevent the oil and grease from injuring mechanism or parts which are associated with other portions of the shaft. It is recognized that oiltight hearing or packing means may in many instances serve to prevent flow of the lubricant along the shaft, but such expedients have been found to be unsatisfactory in many instances. Thus it has been found that the effectiveness of grease retainers or oil-tight packing devices is frequently lost where varying conditions of use, such as widely varying temperatures, are encountered. Another instance of unsatisfactory operation of such grease retainers has been found where the apparatus in which the rotatable shaft is employed is of such a nature that it may be continuously operated for-relatively protracted periods but which may also remain idle for relatively protracted periods, those parts of the apparatus which are associated with the rotating shaft and which are to be protected against having the lubricant come into contact therewith need to be protected both in instances where the apparatus operates continuously for relatively protracted periods and also in those instances where the apparatus is idle or at rest.

In view of the foregoing it is an important object of this invention to enable flow of lubricant along a shaft to be prevented under all of the varying conditions encountered in use, and particularly-under those conditions hereinabove set forth. Objects related to the foregoing are to accomplish this by so locating the parts which are to be kept free of lubricant when the apparatus is at rest, that such parts are well spaced above the sump or the like in which the lubricant is stored and also by locating the parts in such a location that lubricant which comes into contact with the means effective to protect such parts may drain therefrom back into the sump or the like during at rest intervals in the course of use of the apparatus; to interpose, between the parts of the shaft that are to be protected against havparts that are to be protected against having the lubricant come into contact therewith; to associate a. protecting device with a movable element of the apparatus and to so arrange such a device I that it' will be effective during the course of movement thereof to deflect a lubricant away from parts to be protected against having a lubricant or the like to come into contact therewith; to so form a protecting device-of the aforesaid character that a lubricant or the like passing into-contact therewith during movement thereof will be deflected back to the source of the lubricant; and to insure that lubricant or the like passing to a protecting device of the aforesaid character will so drain therefrom when such a device is at rest that the lubricant or the like will-be prevented from passing-to those parts that are to be protected by the protecting device.

One particularly difficult situation involving the control or prevention of flow of lubricant along a shaft is found in'connection with control apparatus having operating elements associated with one or more wheels of railway or like equipment. The elements so associated with one or more of the wheels of the equipment may constitute all or merely a part of detecting means 0perable to sense an operating condition with respect to which it is desired to effect a control operation as, for example, an incipient wheel sliding condition, such detecting means being operative to initiate a control operation which, in the instance of detection of an incipient wheel sliding condition during a braking operation, may be a release or reduction in effectiveness of the braking means or it may be a sanding operation to increase the adhesion between a wheel and the rail on which it rolls or the control operation may be a combination of such operations. v

One particularly satisfactory arrangement for detecting means of the aforesaid character has been to associate such a detecting means with a journal box for the axle of a wheel or the like, the operative condition of which is to be determinative of the functioning of the detecting means. In such arrangements, however, it is necessary thatthe operative parts of the detecting means be so protected that a lubricant or the like contained within the journal box will be prevented from passing thereto and this is particularly true where the detecting means includes a commutator switch or switches, electrical gen erator means, inertia operated switch means or the like and to enable this desirable end tobe realized in a novel and efiicient manner is among the important objects of our invention.

Further objects of this invention are to enable flow of lubricant along a rotating shaft to be prevented by means wherein stationary and rotatable parts which are out of contact with each other cooperate in controlling the flow of the lubricant; and to enable such lubricant fiow to be controlled by means which are of general application, not only to railway apparatus or equipment, but also to rotating shafts generally, as for example, to crank shafts, transmission shafts and the like used in automotive vehicles, power plants, and other installations involving the production or transmission of power.

Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and claims and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show preferred embodiments and the principle thereof and what we now consider to be the best mode in which we have contemplated applying that principle. the invention embodying the same or equivalent principle may be used and structural changes may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the present invention and the purview of the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a partially schematic elevational view of a pair of wheels such as are provided at one side of a truck on railway equipment and which have detecting means associated therewith of the character in which our invention may advantageously be embodied;

Fig. 2 is a sectional detail view taken substantially on the line 2--2 on Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the protecting device of the present invention that is illustrated in section in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view, similar to Fig. 2', showing a modified form of our invention;

Fig. 5 is an elevational view of the ancillary protecting device that is illustrated in section in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is another view similar to Fig. 2 and showing another form of our invention;

Fig. 7 is an elevational view of the ancillary protecting device that is illustrated in section in Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view taken along the rotative axis of the crank shaft of an internal combustion engine and illustrating still another embodiment of our invention whereby escape of lubricant from the crank case is prevented;

Figs. 9 and 10 are crosssectional views taken respectively along the lines 9-9 and I0--Ill of Fig. 8;

Fig. 11 is a sectional view similar to 8 and illustrating another form of the invention as applied to the crank shaft of an internal combustion engine;

Fig. 12 is a sectional view taken along the line |2-l2 of Fig. 11;

Fig. 13 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view taken along the axis of a power transmitting shaft and illustrating the application of our invention thereto; and

Fig. 14 is a. sectional view taken along the line l4l4 of Fig. 13.

The selected embodiments of our invention that are illustrated in Figs. 1 to 7 of the accompanying drawings are utilizedv in a control apparatus that is particularly adapted for use on railway equipment or the like to detect any tendency of the wheels of such equipment to slide or slip on Other embodiments ofthe rails instead of normally rolling thereon, but it is to be understood that this showing is merely illustrative of a wide variety of apparatus of this character in which the invention may be embodied, and other apparatus in which the invention may be employed is shown in Figs, 8 to 14 of the drawings.

The control apparatus with which our invention is shown in Figs. 1 to 7 of the accompanying drawings is of the general character to which United States Letters Patent Nos. 2,232,751 and 2,232,752, both patented February 25, 1941, pertain. Such apparatus operates in dependence upon a principle inferred from numerous observations in practice, namely, that the wheels on separate axles ofthe same vehicle or truck do not maintain equal rotative speeds when a condition tending toward wheel sliding arises. Thus, where the wheels encounter a slippery portion of the rail while being decelerated in the course of a braking operation of the equipment (assuming this produces a tendency toward sliding of the wheels) it has been observed that a wheel or the wheels on the axle will start to slow down before the wheel or wheels on a companion axle. If this condition persists, then the one set of Wheels may become locked and slide along the rails before the other set of wheels and while the other set are still moving. Such variation in rotative speeds of the respective wheels develops a perceptible time prior to any actual sliding of the wheels. Therefore, in order to detect a tendency toward wheel sliding before any sliding actually occurs, the rotative speeds of the wheels on two or more axles may be compared, and if an appreciable difference is detected, then a control operation, such as sanding the track or releasing or reducing the effectiveness of the brakes may be effected to thereby restore normal rolling of the wheels.

The present invention is embodied in detecting means of the character adapted for use with control apparatus of the aforesaid character described in full detail in the copending application of Rosser L. Wilson, Serial No. 426,118 filed January 9, 1942, now Patent No. 2,320,809, patented June 1. 1943.

Such detecting means includes two commutator switches which are respectively associated with the wheels whose speeds of rotation are to be compared in the manner and for the purpose explained hereinabove. Thus, referring to Fig. 1, two commutator switches SI and S2 are respectively associated with the wheels WI and W2 that are respectively mounted on axles as A, Fig. 2, of a truck (not shown). Each switch Si and S2 is supported in a housing [5 which constitutes the cover of a journal box B for the respective axle A. The switches SI and S2 are generally of identical construction and when utilized in the manner described in the aforesaid copending application, certain parts are omitted from the switch SI, but in so far as the present invention is concerned these switches may be considered. as being identical since each includes parts that are to be protected against the lubricant from the housing [5 passing thereto As shown best. in Fig.v 2,. the journal box cover or switch housing 15 has a generally cylindrical exterior surface on which an annular flange I6 is formed intermediate the ends of the housing. The flange I6 is. secured by bolts IT to a cooperating flange M3 on the outer face of the journal box B, a suitable gasket [9 being interposed between the flanges l6 and I8. As thus mounted, the

cover I is concentric with respect to the axle A and extends for a short distance interiorly of the journal box B, the inner end of the cover l5 being open and terminating near the vertical plane in i which the outer end of the axle A lies. Preferably a neat fit is afforded between the journal box B and the cover so that the cover is accurately centered withrespect to the axle A. The other portion of the cover or housing l5 extends a substantia1 distance beyond the free end of the journal box B and axle A. Moreover, a cylindrical boss is disposed concentrically within the housing 5 and extends inwardly toward the end of the axle A but terminates in spaced relation therewith. This boss 2|] serves to support various parts of the switch structure, as will be explained presently. Asused in the present description, the term inner or inwardly means toward the left as viewed in Fig. 2, or toward the axle A, and outer or outwardly means toward the right as viewed in Fig. 2, or awayfrom the axle A.

Each switch as S2 comprises a stationary portion 2|, Fig. 2, referred to herein as the stator,

and a cooperating rotatable portion 22, referred to herein as the rotor. These parts are made of suitable insulating material such as a synthetic resin and have embodied therein certain electrical conducting elements which are included in the control circuits of the apparatus. The rotor 22 is connected to the axle A to be driven thereby and cooperates with the stator 2i to selectively establish or interrupt the control circuits.

In the present instance, the stator 2| is disposed interiorly of the boss and has a cylindrical opening extending through it for the reception of the rotor 22, whichis likewise of cylindrical configuration. The stator 2| is supported by a web 23 formed on the interior wall of the boss 20. The inner face of the stator 2| is flush with the adjoining portion of the boss 2i! and is engaged by the fiat face of a hub-shaped retaining member 25, Fig, 2, which is secured to the boss 20' by screws 26, a gasket 2'! being interposed between the member 25 and the stator 2|. Thus the-stator 2| is securely retained in the desired non-rotative relation within the boss M. A plurality of commutator bars 3d of conductive material are imbedded' in the. insulating material of the stator 2| flush with the interior and outer end surfaces thereof and brushes mounted in the rotor 22 cooperate with these bars. The rotor 22 is mounted upon a shaft ti! which extends through the hub 4| of the retaining member 25, this hub extending inwardly from the base of the member 25 toward the end of the axle A. A ball bearing 42 carried by the retaining member 25 supports the shaft 4%] in axial alignment with the axle A. To insure accurate centering of the shaft relative to the axleA. an annular recess is formed in the inner end of th boss 2% to receive the retaining member 25, the rim M, Fig. 2, of this recess fitting accurately around the periphery of the member 25. The ball bearing 42 is received in a recess Within the hub of the retainingmember 25 and is retained in place by a washer 49 which is seated in a shallow recess in the outer end of the retaining member 25 abutting the gasket 2'1 and which bears against the exterior race of the ball bearing 42 to maintain the ball bearing seated in the retaining member 25.

The shaft 441 extends inwardly from the ball bearing 42 into proximity with the outer end of the axle A, and this portion of the shaft M3 is flattened on opposite sides as indicated at so that it may pass between a pair of spaced lugs 43 on a plate 46, Figs. 2 and 4, which is adapted to be secured to the end of the-axle A by screws 41. The lugs 48 grip the fiat surfaces 45 of the shaft Ml and cause the shaft 40 to rotate with the axle A when the vehicle is in motion. Because of the accurate interfitting of the various switch parts, the shaft 4|] is maintained coaxially with respect to the axle A and hence there is no tendency to produce undue strains or wear such as might result from even a slight eccentricity of the shaft 49 in relation to the axle A. l

The interior of the journal box cover i5 coinmunicates freely with the interior of the journal box B as shown in Fig. 2, and hence a pool of lubricant in the space intermediate the boss 20 and the bottom wall of the cover i5 serves as a sump for the lubricant utilized in the journal box. Lubricant may be introduced into the interior of the journal box B and journal box cover IS, without the removal of the cover from the box, through an opening disposed a predeter mined distance above the lowermost part of the cylindrical shell of the cover IE to thereby determine the permissible height of the pool of lubricant when the vehicle is at rest. A pipe plug 5|], Fig. 1, is employed to close the opening into the housing l5 after introduction therethrough of the lubricant into the journal box. If desired, an oil seal may be disposed about the shaft 40 where it enters the hub il of the retaining member 25, but since our invention is efiective'to prevent oil or other lubricant so introduced into the housing l5 from passing to the shaft MI and thence into the circuit closing means, including the commutator bars 38, such an oil or lubricant seal need not necessarily be employed.

It will be understood that brushes 5| carried by the rotor 22 cooperate with the commutator bars 3|! in such a manner that if an incipient wheel sliding condition accrues, circuit will be closed to means which are effective to prevent the accrual-of an actual wheel sliding condition. Thus, certain of the brushes 5| are interconnected and suitable conductors are connected to the commutator bars 30, and these conductors are led from the switches SI and S2 through flexible conduits 52. Desirably, these conductors lead to a plug as '53 at the free end of each conduit 52, these plugs having posts (not shown) thereon to which the conductors in the conduits are respectively connected, such posts being respectively insertable into sockets as 54 supported, for example, on the frame of the truck in which the axles as A are journaled. From the sockets as 54 the conductors are led through suitable conduit means to the devices which are effective to bring about a control operation. The manner in which the circuits closed by the cooperation ofthe brushes 5| with the commutator bars iii! are operative to bring about a control operation is described in detail in the above referred to copending application and, in so far as the present invention is concerned, the brushes 5| and commutator bars 30 are important since they are illustrative of means to be protected against having a lubricant pass thereto, particularly since, as will be understood, passage of the lubricant to brushes as 5| and bars as 30 might interfere with proper operation thereof.

Hence, in accordance with the present inven= tion, in order to prevent'the passage of a 1ubricant or the like to parts such as the brushes 5| and the bars 30, we provide what may well be called a flinger arrangement which is effective to protect parts such as the brushes BI and bars 30 from having a lubricant pass thereto, In the form of our invention illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3, we utilize a substantially cup-shaped flinger 66 which comprises a flat annular base or bottom wall BI and an upstanding wall .Or rim 62 which has an outwardly extending flange 63 about the free edge thereof. The wall 62 has two spaced apart openings 64 therein which are spaced apart similarly to the spacing apart of the openings in the plate 46 through which the bolts 41 are passed. Moreover, the plate 6| is so sized and the wall 62 is of such height that flange 63'at the free edge thereof will bedisposed adjacent to the free edge of the rim 44 on the boss 26 when the flinger 66 is installed in position, the free edge of the flange 63, as best shown in Fi ,2. desirably being disposed to extend beyond the outer periphery of the rim 44. When the flinger 60 is to be utilized, the outer face of the bottom 6| thereof is disposed against the adjacent free end of an axle as A and thereafter the plate as 46 is disposed within the flinger. The bolts as 4'! are then passed through openings in the plate .46 aligned with openings 64 in the bottom 6|, and these bolts are then threaded into tapped openings in the adjacent end of the axle whereupon the plate 46 and the flinger 60 are securely fast in position as shown in Fig. 2.

Thus the flinger 60 is disposed about the shaft as 40 and as this flinger rotates with the axle as A any oil or lubricant that collects .on the periphery thereof is thrown therefrom, and by reason of the flange 63 about the free edge thereof the lubricant is prevented from having access to the narrow space between adjacent faces of the flange 63 and the rim 44, wherefore lubricant does not pass through the shaft 46. ,-By reason of the fact that the flange 63 projects beyond the periphery of the rim 44 and therefore the boss 20 and since the face of the flange 63 is disposed in juxtaposition to the free edge of the rim 44 and since the centrifugal effect of the rim 63 forces oil outwardly, any :oil that passes to the periphery of the looss 2-6 is prevented from passing to the shaft 46.

The foregoing prevails so :long as the axle A and flinger 60 are in motion but when these parts come to rest, oil that has collected on-the periphery of the boss 26, and particularly on the upwardly disposed part of this periphery, may flow through the space between adjacent faces of the flange 63 and rim 44. However, any oil which does flow through this space will flow over the face of the retainer 25 and the hub 4| thereof to the groove 65 formed in the periphery of this hub in juxtaposition to the free end thereof. The groove 65 is disposed and so sized that any oil which does flow thereto will flow therethrough ,to the lower part thereof to then pass into the interior of the flinger 60. The oil will then flow along the inner face of the lower part of the wall 62 .of the flinger to .drain out through the space between adjacent faces of the flange 63 and rim 44 at the'lower parts thereof. -If desired, and in order to insure such drainage from the wall 62, this wall may be slightly inclined toward the free end thereof although in actual use of the flinger it has been found that this is not essential.

As a further means ,of insuring that any oil which may pass between adjacent faces of the flange .63 and1rim.44 will be prevented from passing to the shaft .as 40, what may well be called an ancillary protecting :device may :be utilized,

an arrangement of this character ein i lust ated in 41. Inasmuch as th p rts disclosed in Fig. 4 ful y corre pond to thes i ust ated in f r example Fi .2, s milar referen e ha acters are applied to the various pe -ts in Rise .2 and 4- H an annu ar plate 6.6, Fi s. 4 and .5, is

provided which has an openin therein sized to' neatly accommodate the hub 4! of the retainer 25, the diameter of the plate 66 being such that when this plate is disposed on the hub 41, as shown in Fig. 4, the p riphery 9f the plate will be slightly spaced from the inner face of the wall 62 of the flinger 60. The plate 66 is fast to a ring 6.! in any suitable manner. as by being welded thereto, and this ring is adapted to fit over the periphery of the h b 4 adjacent to the free end thereof so that the b lt 6.8 passed here through may pass into the groove 65 to thereby fasten the ring 67 and plate 66 tothe 'retaine 25.

It will be manifest that any oil that may flow of the hub 4|, the oil will ,be deflected away from the shaft as 4 6 to be drained from the ,flinger 60 in the manner in which -.oil flowing to the roove 66 is to be drained therefrom, this having been explained hereinabove.

Yet another arrangement effective to insure against passage of "lubricant to a shaft as 4,0 and the parts associated therewith that are to be protected against having a lubrieant come into contact therewith is illustrated Figs. 6 and 7 wherein a sleeve 1-0 is utilized and which is so sized in diameter as to neatly embrace the hub 45 of the retainer 26, this s eeve being of such length that when one end thereof is engaged with the adjacent facelof theretainer 25 theopposite end thereof projects well beyond the free end of the hub 41 to be terminated in spaced relation with the bolts 4;! effective to secure the plate 46 and the bottom 6! to the adja ent end of the axle A. The sleeve 10 has an outwardly -Xtending flange ll formed thereon at the end thereef disposed adjacent to the heads of the bolts :41. In order to prevent displacement of the sleeve 16 from the hub .4l, bolts '12 ar .passed through this sleeve and into the groove 65 formed in the hub .41, and in this --respectit will be understood that except in so ,far as the sleeve J6 is concerned various parts illustrated in Fig. 6 fully correspond to those illustrated in Figs. 2 and 4 and therefore reference characters such as are applied to the various elements Figs. '2 and 4 are also applied to the elements where these appear in ,Fig. 6.

Here again any oil that may flow through the space between-adjacent faces of the .flange 63 and rim 44 will flow to-the periphery of the sleeve 10, and inasmuch as oneend-of this sleeve tightly fits against the adjacent end of the retainer 45 and since the flange H is providedjat the opposite end of this sleeve anyoil that passes to the sleeve will flow thereover and {drain therefrom at the lower edge thereof to pass out between the lower parts of adjacent faces of the flange 63 and rim 44.

While in theembodiments of the invention disclosed in Figs. 1 to 7, the invention has been disclosed as a means for protecting the electrical structure of a control apparatus associated with an axle of railway or like equipment, it is clear that the invention-is also well suited for .association with other apparatus such as an internal u tion eneine'llfl shown .fragmentally in F s- 8 to of the drawings. As there shown a crankshaft BI is supported in the crankcase 82 formed by and between the cylinder block 83 and the separably related pan 84 by means including a separable or cap type main bearing 85, and the arrangement is such that the power output end 86 of the crankshaft 8I extends outwardly in the form of a stub shaft throughan opening 81 in an end wall 88 of the crankcase 82.

In the construction thus described the end wall 88 is spaced a substantial distance from the main bearing 85 to thereby afford a recess or chamber 89 within which means is provided in accordance with this invention for preventing passage of oil from the crankcase 82 along the stub shaft 88 of the crankshaft. For this purpose a flinger 99 is mounted on the stub shaft 88, the flinger 99 being of a two-piece or'split construction so that the two parts thereof meet in the line of separation 9| as shown in Fig. 9. The flinger 99 includes a mounting sleeve 92 which embraces the stub shaft 86 and the two separable "portions of the mounting sleeve 92 are clamped. upon the stub shaft 96 by means such as bolts 93 extended through outwardly projecting lugs 99. mounting sleeve 92 has an outwardly projecting disc portion 95 formed integrally therewith and from the outer edge of the disc portion, 3, cylindrical wall portion 96 extends in a direction away from the mounting sleeve 92. At the end which is remote from the disc 95 the cylindrical wall portion 99 has an outwardly extending annular flange 91 which corresponds in most respects with the form and function of the flange 93 formed on the flinger 99 shown in Fig. 2. i

The flinger 99 is clamped on the stub shaft 96 by the clamping bolts 93 in such a position that the flat face of the flange 91 is disposed relatively close to. the. inner face 99 of the wall 88,. and

hence, when the shaft 96 and the flinger 99 are rotating, the flange 91 of the finger cooperates with stationary wall 88 in throwing in an outward direction any oil which may tend to run along the inner surface 99 of the wall 88. When the shaft 89 is rotating this cooperative action is suflioient to prevent oil from reaching the shaft 86 adjacent to the opening 81, but as hereinbefore pointed out, the present invention also contemplates and makes-provision for control of the flow of oil during those periods when the-shaft 86 is at rest. To this end therefore an additional protecting means in the form of a sleeve I99 is disposed within the annular clearance space afforded between the cylindrical wall portion 99 and the shaft 89. As shown in Figs. 8 and 10, the sleeve I99 is of a two-part construction and is separable along a line IDI which is preferably disposed in a horizontal location. The sleeve I99 has an inwardly extended flange I92 which abuts against the inner face 99 of the wall 88 to thereby serve as a mounting means, and the upper and lower sections of the sleeve I99 are held in place on the wall 88 by means such as bolts I93. At the end which is remote from the mounting flange I92, the sleeve 199 has an outwardly extended flange I95 which in the form herein shown is disposed relatively close to the face of the disc portion 95 of the flinger 99. It will also be ob served that the flange I95 extends outwardly so as to be relatively close to the inner cylindrical surface of the cylindrical wall portion 96 of the flinger. With this construction it will be evident that when the shaft96 is at rest, any oil which flows downwardly along the wall 88 and past the The 1 flange 91 will drain in one direction or the other along the top of the upper section of the sleeve I99, and such oil will be drained downwardly so as to bedeposited on the inner surface of the cylindrical portion 96 of the flinger 99. From this location the oil will of course drain downwardly along the flange 91 of the flinger and into the main body of oil contained in the crankcase below the lower level of the flange 91.

The arrangement disclosed in Figs. 8 to 10 is such that the flinger 99 and the associated sleeve I99 are housed within the crankcase 82, but in accordance with the embodiment of the invention disclosed in Figs. 11 and 12 of the drawings a similar oil retainin means may be mounted exteriorly of the crankcase. In this embodiment= of the invention, the crankcase 82, the cylinder block 83 and the pan 84 are formed in the same manner as hereinbefore described in connection with Fig. 8 and corresponding reference numerals are therefore employed for these elements as well asthe other elements of the engine. In this embodiment of the invention, however, the stub shaft 89 which projects through the opening 81 and wall 88 is somewhat longer than the stub shaft- 88, thereby to afford an additional length of. shaft outsideof the wall 88, and to inclose the oil retaining means, a housing II9 is mounted about the shaft 86' outside of the wall 88. This is accomplished by means such as cap screws I II extending through a flange II2 of the housing II9, these cap screws extending into the wall 88. The housing II 9 is arranged to form t a chamber H3 about the shaft 89 and outside of the wall 88, and a flinger H4 is mounted on the shaft 89 within the chamber H3 so as to rotate with the shaft 88'. The flinger H4 i formed in one piece and of generally cup-shaped form to provide a mounting sleeve I I5 of cylindrical form which may be associated with the shaft 86' by means of a press fit. A disc portion H6 extends outwardly from one end of the mounting sleeve I I5 and a cylindrical portion III extends longitudinally from the outer edge of the disc portion H9 in a direction opposite from the mounting sleeve H5. At the edge of the cylindrical portion 1 which is opposite from the disc portion II 8 an outwardly extending flange H8 is provided for the accomplisment of the same functions as the flange 63 of Fig. 2, and the end surface of the flange H8 is disposed relatively close to the inner surface of an end wall II9 of the housing II9, the wall II9 being disposed parallel to the wall 88 of the crankcase. With this arrangement the rotating flange I I8 cooperates with stationarywall II9 in discharging oil outwardly away from the shaft 88' and such discharged oil strikes the inner surface of the housing II9 so as to flow downwardlyinto the lower end or portion of the chamber II3 where such oil collects.

To prevent oil from running downwardly alon the wall H9 and into contact with the shaft 86' a sleeve I29 is mounted within the cylindrical portion II1 of the flinger and on the stationary end wall II9. The sleeve I29 is generally similar to the sleeve I99 but in the present instance the sleeve I29 may be made in one piece since it is mounted with the removable housing II9.

The sleeve I29 has an inwardly extending mounting flange I2I which is held in place on the end wall II9 by cap screws I22, and at the other end of the sleeve I29 an outwardly extending flange 123 is provided. The form of the flange I23 and its relation to the flinger H4 are similar to the form and relation of the flange I95. With this arrangement any oil which drains downwardly along the wall II9 strikes the top of 'the' sleeve I20 is drained downwardly and off the flange I23 on to the internal surface of the flinger II4. Thus the construction shown in Fig. 11 prevents flow of on along the shaft 86 and away from the crankcase, whether the shaft is in rotation or is at rest.

In Figs. 13 and 14 of the drawings the invention illustrated as applied to a power transmission shaft I30 which extends through the side wall I3I of a tank or reservoir. I32 in which a lubricant or other liquid I33 is contained. The transmission shaft I30 has a driving element such as a gear I34 on its outer end, and the shaft I30 "is supported by a sleeve bearing I35 carried on the wall I3I. The bearing I35 is, in the present instance, formed integrally on a mounting plate I36 which is secured by bolts I3I in closing relation to a relatively large opening I38 in the. side wall I3I. It will be evident that the liquid I33 might in many instances. tend to pass along the shaft I30 and through the bearing I35, but in accordance with the present invention means are associated with the shaft I30 within the container I32 to prevent such new of oil or other liquid along the shaft and through the bearing I35. To this end a flinger I40 is mounted as by a press flt upon the shaft I30 for rotation therewith, the flinger I40 being of cup-shaped form and including a mounting sleeve I4I, an outwardly projecting disc like portion I42, a cylindrical wall portion I43, and an outwardly projecting flange I 44 which are formed and related in substantially the same manner as-the elements of the flinger II4 of Fig. 11. The flange I44 is arranged so as to be disposed relatively close to the inner face of the mounting plate I36, it being noted that the opening I38 is of a size suflicient to provide ample clearance about the periphery of the flange I44 when the flinger I40 is moved into position. With this construction the liquid which. moves toward the bearing I35 is thrown radially outwardly so as to drain downwardly along the inner face of the mounting plate I33.

In thisembodiment of the invention an additional protecting means is afforded by a sleeve I46 which has an inwardly extending mounting flange M1 at one end. secured to the inner face of the mounting plate I36 by cap'screws I48. At its other end the sleeve I46 has an outwardly extending flange I49 which is disposed relatively close to the disc portion I42 of the flinger I40. Thus, with this construction, any oil or liquid which runs down the inner surface of the plate I36 will drain off of the top of the sleeve I43 and onto the inner surface of the flinger, and will thereafter drain out of the flinger into the main body of liquid or oil I33.

Wehave shown the fingers, as 60, 90, H4 and I40, as being formed in each instance from a single piece of material but it will be understood that, for example, the outward flanges may be made as a separate part and joined to the cylindrical wall in a suitable manner as by Welding. Moreover, if desired, mounting walls or flanges may bemade as separate pieces and suitably joined to the cylindrical walls without departing from the ambit of our invention. Likewise, while we have shown the plate 66 and rim 61 as being separate elements, these might be made in one piece should this be desired. Yet further while we have shown the sleeve I and flange 'II thereon as being integral, it will be understood that these part might be formed of separate elements and joined together in a suitable manner as by welding, and that a similar manner of formation might be employed in respect to the elements of the protecting sleeves I00, I20 or I46. 1

It will be manifest from the foregoing description that we have provided an arrangement which will effectively prevent a lubricant from passing along a rotating shaft to those parts which are to be protected against lubricant. The protective oil and grease retainer of this invention is of such nature that it will be effective either when the apparatus of which it is a part is in motion or is at rest and it is by reason of this that we are able to effectively retain and prevent undesired flow of oil and grease along a rotating shaft in situations where adequate and satisfactory control has heretofore been unattainable.

While We have illustrated and described selected embodiments of our invention, it is .to'be understood that these are capable of variation and modification and we therefore do not wish to be limited to the precise details set forth, but desire .to avail ourselves of such changes and alterations as fall within the purview of the following claims.

We claim:

1. A device of the class described including a housing provided at the outer side with an inwardly extending cylindrical boss provided at its end with an annular recess forming a projecting rim, a hub-shaped retaining member seated in the annular recess of said boss and surrounded by the projecting rim thereof and having a projecting hub, a rotatable shaft located wholly within the housing and extending through the hubshaped member and provided at'its inner end with flattened surfaces, 2. rotatabe plate having spaced projecting lugs gripping the flattened surfaces of said shaft, a substantially cup-shaped lubricant deflecting member enclosing said plate and the adjacent portion of said shaft and provided with a, peripheral flange arranged closely adjacent to said rim and cooperating with the same to form a lubricant seal.

2. A device of the class described including a housing provided at its outer end with an inwardly extending annular boss provided at its end with an annular recess forming a projectingrim, a hub-shaped retaining member seated in the annular recess of said boss and surrounded by the rim thereof and provided with a projecting hub having an annular groove, a shaft located wholly within the housing and extending through the hub-shaped member and having at its inner end flattened surfaces, a rotating plate having spaced lugs receiving the inner end of said shaft and gripping the flattened surfaces thereof, a. substantially cup-shaped lubricant deflecting member enclosing said plate and the adjacent portion of said shaft and provided with a peripheral flange arranged closely adjacent said rim and cooperating therewith to form a lubricant seal, an annular plate having a circular opening fitting the projecting hub of the retaining member andhaving its periphery spaced slightly from the interior surface of the cupshaped member, and a ring fixed to the annular plate and fitting over said hub and provided with fastening means projecting into said annular groove and retaining the annular plate on the hub.

LYALL R. FISH.

CLARENCE F. WIEGMAN, 

